A REAL LIFE SPORTS MARKETING PLAN: Case Study Wellington Phoenix FC Club
Table of Contents
Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 2
The Wellington Phoenix Football Club (FC) profile ....................................................................................... 3
Mission Vision and Goals .............................................................................................................................. 4
Analysis of the Market Environment ............................................................................................................ 4
External environment analysis .................................................................................................................. 5
Internal Environment Analysis .................................................................................................................. 6
Situation Analysis .......................................................................................................................................... 6
Competitors .................................................................................................................................................. 7
Target Market ............................................................................................................................................... 9
Marketing Matrix .......................................................................................................................................... 9
Product Strategy ....................................................................................................................................... 9
Promotion Strategy ................................................................................................................................. 10
Place Strategy.......................................................................................................................................... 11
Price Strategy .......................................................................................................................................... 12
Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................... 13
REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................................ 14
2
Introduction
The sports industry refers to ‘business activity experienced that focuses on fitness,
recreation, sports, tourism and leisure’ (Meek, 1997). In the sports, industry marketing refers to
businesses and products offered to buyers mainly supporters and fans in relation to good,
services, people, places and ideas.
In sports marketing is defines as ‘the process of designing and implementing activities for
the production, pricing, promotion and distribution of a sport or sport business product to satisfy
the needs of desires of consumers and to achieve the company’s objectives’ (Yoshida & James,
2010). A Football club like Wellington Phoenix FC is a business, structured into different
departments to facilitate the success of the club.
Marketing involves the identification and study of people; what they buy, how much they
will pay, and the reason for purchase of the products (Yoshida & James, 2010). It also focuses on
how the promotional tactics and messages influence their consumer behavior. The recognition
and analysis of the environment in which sports business takes place determines the effects of
various strategic decisions that will enhance the success of the sport business.
According to Kriemadis & Terzidou (2007), marketing concerns the management of a
company in making decisions that relate to customer retention and increasing product base. In
marketing one should consider at least three requirements: examining the needs and wants of
people as the basis of deciding what is in the best interest of the business, selection of the best
way to meet the consumer needs targeted by the firm and achieving the organizations
performance objectives by meeting the consumers needs satisfactorily.
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There are two ways on which sports marketing can be undertaken. The concepts are;
narrowly focusing on the consumers and spectators based on the concept of promoting and
selling sports activities and events. The other concept broadly and inclusively uses sports
marketing fundaments in any business based on the contemporary sports management and
industry (Shoham & Kahle, 1996). The areas of focus in sports marketing are; consumers,
competition, company and the climate.
The Wellington Phoenix Football Club (FC) profile
The Wellington Phoenix Football Club is amongst the profession football club based in
Wellington New Zealand. It was notably founded in 2007 after New Zealand Knights were
withdrawn from the A-League The cub plays its home games at the Westpac Stadium commonly
referred to as the ‘Ring of Fire’ by its fans. The record for the clubs fan attendance were highly
recorded in the Match against New Castle United Jets in 2010 with attendance of 32, 792 at
home. Further the highest fans attendance averagely in the 2007-2008 season was 11, 683 while
the lowest recorded fan attendance was 3,898 against Perth Glory FC at home.
The aim of this marketing plan is to consider how theory can effectively improve
Wellington Phoenix club membership and game attendance. This is in relation to market matrix
like product strategy, promotion strategy, place strategy and price strategy. The clubs strongest
fan base is in Wellington, New Zealand and amongst New Zealanders staying in Australia. The
Football clubs main partners in the A-League are the Wellington Phoenix Brand Hyundai,
Westfield and Harvey Norman. The football club is sponsored by Huawei, Nova Energy
Addidas, Revera, KPMG, Dominion Post, Bartercard , Exodus amongst others.
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In the recent past, the club has witnessed a decline in membership and game attendance.
The marketing plan and strategy herein proposed seeks to improve the attendance of games by
fans and supporters as well as improve the number of members of the club. In the international
setup, Wellington FCs plan is to ensure that its has fans in Australia not only from New
Zealanders but globally. The club has sought to brand itself through the ‘Yellow Fever’ Initiative
but it needs to focus on improving the brand image abroad and locally.
Mission Vision and Goals
The vision of the Wellington Phoenix FC is that the club is able to be financially selfsustaining on long-term basis that is able to achieve the highest standards of excellence for the
football player in the field and the corporate governance structure off the field.
The club mission is to establish a football culture whereby the club has the ability to
develop and nurture talent within that framework of excellence. In the field, the club seeks to
develop a possession based playing style that is competitive, attractive and displays the best of
our talent. In achieving the mission, goals and vision of Wellington Club adopting a value chain
concept to improve their marketing strategy is important in improving their image as a football
club locally and internationally (Ross, 2007). The value chain in its marketing strategy focuses
on products, marketing, sales and services.
Analysis of the Market Environment
The purpose of analyzing the market environment is to determine’ the external and
internal environment within the sports organization’ (Mahony & Howard, 2001). This is to
understand how the factors influence Wellington Phoenix FC either positively or negatively. The
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market analysis is carried out through analyzing the external and internal environment in relation
to the market environment (Mascarenhas et al., 2006).
External environment analysis
This focuses on main factors such as the market, customers and competitors (Bee &
Kahie, 2006). The external factors that can influence the success of Wellington include;

Economic factors that relate to the world economy, inflation, volatility and credit policies

Political factors include legislation on sports organizations, level of taxation, regulatory
constraints such as advertising, packaging, pricing and the quality of products.

The socio-cultural factors include impact of education, attitudes and changes towards life
style and leisure time. The change in population distribution and dynamics can also affect
the marketing strategy of Wellington FC.

Ten advancement of technology also affects the marketing plan and promotional strategy
of a football club since it creates a new avenue for which games are played.

The market is also an external factor since it; is dependent on customer analysis,
demography, psychographic characteristics (interests, opinion, customer attitudes)
(Drayer et al, 2012). These factors that affects the consumer behavior (motivation, needs,
perception, beliefs, lifestyle and attitudes also influence the external environment for the
conduct of business.

Competitors are a component of the external market environment factors since the more
intensive the competition; the more one needs to create a niche to beat the competition
(Fullerton & Russell, 2008).
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Internal Environment Analysis
An internal analysis of a business is to evaluate the resource enterprise to determine the strengths
and weaknesses of the sports club or organization (Fink et al, 2002) In relation to Wellington FC
the key internal factors that would affect their marketing plan are;

The club’s reputation in relation to how it conducts its matches.

The club also considers its market share, product quality, marketing mix elements, and
the effectiveness of the clubs innovation and the geographical coverage of the club’s fan
base (Farrally & Quester, 1997).

The financial factor is also important in the preparation of a marketing plan. The club
must determine its financial availability in relation to cash flow, financial stability, profit
margins and returns on investment (Farrally & Quester, 1997)

The ability to effectively come up with great products and services is also an important
aspect of marketing
Situation Analysis
The marketing strategy adopted by Wellington Phoenix FC is by its brand name in the promotion
of its activities besides football. The situation analysis, determined through the SWOT
(Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and threats) analysis system.
The strengths of the club are;

Good organization

It is amongst the biggest and well-established clubs in newzealand

Average attendance per match
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
It has good team scores
The potential weaknesses are;

Negative revenues

It has insufficient qualifications in international leagues

Popular only in Wellington

Insignificant attendance by members and supporters during events and games

Low fan base
The Opportunities available for Wellington FC are;

Good relationship with the media

Use of clubs players in media promotion

Increase in popularity of football

Improvement in the overall club’s performance
The threats presented to Wellington FC are;

Possible decline in the popularity of football as an area of interest

Bad results

Not being the most popular football club in New Zealand
Competitors
A brand is ‘a name, word, sign or a symbol that identifies the goods and services of an
organization that differentiates it from its competitors’ (Fullerton & Russell, 2008). In football,
competition from other football clubs is in relation to sale of merchandise, subscription to club
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channels as well as attendance to club events in stadiums. According to Richeliue and Pons
(2006) branding a club is a means of determining the degree at which fans and spectators would
turn into paying customers.
The possible competitors are other clubs that play in the A-league that include the Central
Coast Mariners, Perth Glory, Newcastle Jest, Melbourne Victory, Adelaide United, Brisbane
Roar, Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers. In outsmarting a clubs competitor, a brand a
brand image is a way to; serve as a promise to customer, gives information on the product
performance, and serves as a means of instilling trust and triggering fan loyalty.
The main aspect of team branding is to ensure that a team positioned against a competing
team or entertainment offerings from its competitors (Westerbeek & Shilbury, 1999). It is not
important to disregard club rivalry because it is a way in which a club establishes a strong club
both locally and internationally.
Wellington Phoenix FC is a local or domestic club and plays most of its matches at home. The
personality of a club is also a feature of club branding, that is consumers align and identify
themselves with the personalities associated with a brand and gives an opportunity for sponsors
to choose congruent teams (Tsiotsou, 2012). If Wellington FC adopts team personality in how
they brand the club then it would greatly enhance their prestige, competitiveness, morality,
authenticity and credibility.
How can Wellington club improve its brand image in relation to competing with local brands?

The use of local media through running supporters campaign, competitions and release of
the Wellington FC player profiles
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
Fans can be given free club merchandise such as flags, team jerseys , car stickers to boost
image and number of customers

Local celebrities can endorse the club and restore its image especially if damaged by
hooliganism

The use of sponsors such as Coca Cola un advertising slogans
Other strategies used to promote brand awareness of Wellington FC are the creation of outlet
stores broadcasting, preseason’s and internet.
Target Market
The target market of Wellington FC includes the local residents in New Zealand who
have the passion of Fottball. This people like to spend their weekends or free days enjoying the
thrill of some football actions around fans, family members and just like “Outdoor activities”.
The active consumers of Football are people who are either in college or spend most of
their weekdays in stressful environments and drawn by the mere opportunity to unwind. The
Football fans are people who are price conscious, especially informed by the value of the game
and the ticketing prices. For instance the attendance of a football match that is highly marketed
and advertised can be inhibited if the price of the tickets if it is too exorbitant.
Marketing Matrix
The Proposed marketing matrixes include;
Product Strategy
The product quality of any sport service is the core sport product (contest and
entertainment), service production (safety, comfort and the personal attention from the staff) and
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the sports cape features (stadium, restaurant or corporate boxes). This is the focal point of
marketing mix and it includes more than just the goods and services designed, produced or
offered for sale (Shannon, 199). It entails the planning that precedes the actual production,
research and development.
The Westpac Stadium has the potential of influencing the sports core product as a sport
cape features. The improvement of the West Pac Stadium (Ring of Fire) such as installation of a
closable rooftop would improve match attendance especially in the rainy season. In the 2012
matches the lowest fan attendance was 3, 898 the lowest that has ever been experienced since the
formation of the club in 2007.
In marketing Wellington Phoenix, a shift to social media marketing to sell its products to
members online can greatly boost match attendance. This can either be through twitter, Face
book and other social media platforms that can increase the fan base of the club (Richeliieu &
Pons, 2006). This will also greatly aid in branding the club internationally. Optimization of the
club’s Ring of fire with Wi-Fi connections can also be important in increasing match attendance
at the stadiums. For instance, use of fan vision in stadiums can offer different or several live
feeds from different angles during the games and real-time match statistics.
Promotion Strategy
In seeking to maximize profits, it would be important for the club to keep the costs as low
as possible. This can be through the reduction of the clubs running costs through choosing
affordable areas where the team eats and travels to improve the economic status of the club. The
Club is not operating on a not-for-profit basis but it requires extra cash to carry out the football
clubs activities.
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In the case of Wellington FC, the aim of the club is to increase attendance of fans in the
games and matches and therefore ticket prices are to be steady or lowered to lure more members
into the stadium. In seeking to increase the market share of the club in relation to fan base, then
the ticket prices may be set lower level than that of another sport that directly compete with it
(Mullin & Sutton, 2007). The conduct of sporting events by Wellington FC is undeterminable by
one event, since the nature of the event is what informs attendance of individuals.
In deciding to create an effective promotional strategy, then strategic partners are an ideal
prospect in promoting special events and programs. Wellington Phoenix does this promoting its
partners in the facility while offering their staff access to the clubs programs and activities
(Hooley et al, 1990). Strategic partners are important since they carter for some club costs such
as; printing club t-shirts, jerseys and flags, newspaper advertising and marketing flyers. Strategic
partners may include; sporting goods store such as Addidas, football retailers, banks, sports
programs, community centers and area businesses.
Collaborating with sponsors ensures that a team has a large fan base especially if they
partner with well-known consumer brands. The outcome of a partnership leads to the promotion
of both the club and the partner, sharing of customers and marketing in a global platform
(O’Cass & Carlson, 2010)
Place Strategy
In light of sporting events, the place refers either to; stadiums for instance Wellington FC
is hosted at the Westpac Stadium. It is therefore imperative for Wellington to operate on the
premise that the West Pac stadium is the central tool whereby events, sporting teams and various
activities are undertaken.
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Westpac Stadium represents the marketing element in spectator sport since the marketers
have no direct control on field performance (Stewart et al, 2003). The stadium is a marketing tool
, and it should be modified in a way that accommodates other sporting activities and events.
Stadiums were designed as product orientation rather than marketing (Keller, 1993).
The other strategy is to expand the experience of supporters in the stadium by offering
services through cafes and restaurants, training facilities, tours, merchandise stores. There are
different ways in which a hosting venue used to generate more revenue through; setting aside
VIPs, sponsors, general admission (Koo & Hardin, 2008). The club can link the place strategy
and marketing through; a specialized stadium design, physical evidence, process and the people
(Roy & Graeff, 2003).
Price Strategy
The pricing of sports products offered by Wellington FC should be commensurate with
competition posed by other clubs. The club should not place the price for tickets in a way that
signals luxury or prestige and not offsetting low prices in order to sell more tickets (Farrelly &
Quester, 1997).
In setting out the price for Wellington Phoenix FC products and services, due
consideration must be paid to the demand market of the service of product (Gladden & Funk,
2001). It would be important if Wellington FC would give due regard to the opportunity costs,
time, effort and the intangible nature of a sport event before setting a price for a ticket (Guzm &
Ivar , 2012). There are certain factors that also influence the pricing of tickets or sporting events
such as; the product strategy, place strategy, and the promotional strategy (Javalgi et al, 2006).
These factors determine whether the price of an event can be set higher or lowered.
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In the pricing strategy, Wellington FC should take into account; the consumer tastes, the
consumer income levels and situational factors. The other pricing strategies are through ;

Offering discounts to loyal supporters and fans

Prestige pricing for celebrities and any other interested parties
According to Mullin and Sutton (2007) they assert that ‘ the pricing of a sports product is
often based on the marketers sense of consumer demand for certain seats for certain times of day
and for certain privileges. Wellington Phoenix FC can analyze factors such as consumer tastes,
what influences a fan to buy a ticket before setting a price for the tickets (Hur et al., 2011).
Conclusion
Supporters and fans model the Marketing plan of Wellington Phoenix FC to ensure that there is
an increase in club membership as well as attendance of games. The various aspects taken into
account are the environmental factors that affect the marketing strategies of a business.
Wellington Phoenix FC is a club whose aim is to make profit and therefore it has to maximize its
marketing opportunities to target customers and supporters. The strategic marketing practices are
product, price, place and promotional strategies that can see Wellington FC edge out its main
competitors. A marketing plan should not only focus on the marketing matrix but also give
account the competition, team branding and the SWOT analysis to determine its business
outcome.
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